If you’re like most smartphone users, you probably have an arsenal of apps downloaded, right? You might even have your apps seperated into categories — eBay and Amazon would be filed under Shopping, while Candy Crush and Words with Friends filed under Games.
Another category you can consider adding: parking. Here are the apps that would fit in that category and that you may find helpful in the future:
meterUP:
In late 2015, we introduced meterUP, our mobile payment app that offers the convenience of paying for parking through your smartphone. But if you don’t have a smartphone, don’t worry: meterUP also lets you pay through any phone — even flip phones — by calling or texting 1-844-METERUP.
To make things even more convenient, meterUP also alerts you when your time is about to expire. From there, you can choose to remotely extend your time. Here’s a better way to look at it: If your meeting is running later than expected, there’s no need to sprint back to the meter to re-up your time. Through meterUP, you just choose the amount of time you’d like to extend your parking session, without breaking a sweat.
meterUP is available for download on iTunes and Google Play. But keep in mind: Right now meterUP is only available within select areas of Philly during the pilot period. Also, keep your eyes peeled for these signs displaying meterUP zone numbers.
For more information on meteringUP, check out the FAQs or click play on the video below.
ParkSnap:
Not too long ago, Amit Rao, a newcomer to the Philly tech scene, developed ParkSnap, a simple yet very useful app that alerts you when your parking session is about to expire.
We know, you’re probably thinking, “Why in the world would I download this? My phone already has a built-in timer.”
Fair point. But ParkSnap offers some other useful features such as:
- A built-in OCR engine that scans kiosk receipts to take note of your expiration time and reminds you when time is almost up.
- Pin pointing your parking location and giving you directions just in case you forget where you parked.
- Reminding you when your time is about to expire based on the walking distance back to your vehicle.
- Allowing you to email/SMS the picture of your parking receipt to yourself. This’ll come in handy if your receipt is lost, misplaced or better yet, if you’re ticketed even though you paid. The picture can serve as proof of payment when you dispute the ticket.
The most notable feature of ParkSnap: It’s the result of some solid civic hacking by Amit Rao. No one asked or paid him to create ParkSnap, he took it upon himself.
For more details on ParkSnap, check out the FAQ page or Apple’s iTunes Store. Better yet, check out Rao’s other projects through his company, Pixie Bytes.
Note: The Philadelphia Parking Authority and its contracted vendors had no involvement in the development or future development of ParkSnap.
PayTix:
Alright, we’ll make this one quick since this app is probably the least favorite of the bunch, but useful nonetheless.
If the name wasn’t enough of a giveaway, PayTix allows you to pay for outstanding parking tickets with a few taps of your fingers. It’s available for download on iTunes and Google Play. Keep in mind though: If you’d like to pay your parking ticket using PayTix, there’s an additional $3.50 convenience fee. To get the full run-down on PayTix or your options for disputing a ticket, click here.
Enough said. Hopefully you won’t have to use this one, but we just wanted to throw it out there just so you know it’s an option.
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